


Holiday Hues, Butterflies and Blue

by Selkie_de_Suzie



Category: Megamind (2010), Strange Magic (2015)
Genre: Crossover, Fluff, Holiday Cheer, Humor, Magic and Science, Strange Magic Secret Santa 2016, Strange Magic/Megamind, friendship fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-28
Updated: 2016-12-28
Packaged: 2018-09-12 23:07:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9094723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Selkie_de_Suzie/pseuds/Selkie_de_Suzie
Summary: A certain Fairy Princess and Almighty Bog King meet a certain Master of All Villainy and Intrepid Reporter/Damsel In Distress and indulge in some seasonal cheer. With smoke bombs. Written for Strange Magic Secret Santa 2016!





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Angel_of_Fate](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Angel_of_Fate/gifts).



> MY VERY FIRST CROSSOVER FANFIC! I can’t think of two finer fandoms for it =)
> 
> My Strange Magic Secret Santa Gift for the wonderful Whimsicalitywheee, who requested shenanigans between the cast of Strange Magic and Megamind!

“You know, he has something like glamour.” 

Marianne arched an eyebrow at the woman sitting across from her, intrigued by both the statement and by how those pretty blue eyes of hers flashed with keen intelligence and warm curiosity.  _An adventurer’s spirit_. They were only halfway through their cups of tea, and she already liked her immensely. “Oh, does he?” 

Roxanne smiled at the genuine interest in the question and the sparkle in those amber eyes, so beautiful and so obviously not human. God, it was one thing to grow up knowing that there were aliens out in the stretches of stars, but to find out there were actual  _fairies_  and  _goblins_ on this planet, since the stars struck soil all those ages ago—

She struggled to swallow the swell of questions that she was still dying to ask the Fairy –   _a Fairy Princess, an honest to God, holy-hell-the-stories-she-could-tell-me Fairy Freaking Princ_ ess – sitting before her. Roxanne was sure that all her journalism professors would sniff that she ought to have shown a bit more professional skepticism when introductions had first been given, Megamind excitedly talking what his latest gadget had discovered—

_“— the veil that the scanner picked up is almost like an **archaic**  sort of force field, Roxanne, rather like the ones I’ve worked on but so much more… **organic!**  Absolutely amazing!. When they breached it I simply  **had** to ask about it and then I thought **you**  would like to learn about their world. Do we have enough clean cups for tea? I think they would prefer tea to coffee, but you never know with a new species—” _

—but maybe her time with Megamind had made her fine-tuned to sensing more… _alien_  aspects. Either way, the young woman before her was  _obviously_ not human. Beautiful, yes, with her dark redwood hair and fine, delicate features and the dark honey color of her eyes, but not  _human_. The shape of her face was lovely but… _strange_  in an unnamed way that both fascinated and frustrated Roxanne’s insatiable curiosity, and those large eyes had the look of a wild thing to them, almost feline in their beauty. 

And then there was how she held herself, the natural air of command she carried, her strength apparent even in sprawling. Her slim hand drifted to her hip as if out of habit, the gesture reminiscent of reaching for a sword, and her chin had a tilt to it as though she was accustomed to carrying a crown. Roxanne had already wagered her for nobility even before the young woman had announced her title. 

But it all made sense, didn’t it? Having the first Fae interactions and introductions with humans (well, a human and her extraterrestrial boyfriend) be done by the leaders of the realms behind the veil–

_Speaking of which, what **were**  that King and Megamind getting up to in the Lab–? _

Roxanne realized she was rocketing off into a near galaxy’s worth of theories and questions and quickly got back to the topic at hand. “He invented it, actually. It’s  _incredible_  – it’s a holographic watch that cloaks him and he can – well, it lets him look like someone else when he wears it.  _Anyone_  else.” 

“He  _wears_  it?” Marianne breathed, leaning forward in fascination. “I’ve never heard of wearing anything that would produce glamour.”

“On his wrist.” Roxanne set her mug down to demonstrate, her fingers clasping like a bracelet before settling back into the sofa cushions, thoroughly enjoying the younger woman’s wonder, her obvious enraptured enchantment with this new discovery. “But like I said, it’s  _like_ glamour. Probably not the same thing.” A certain memory from high school English Literature flitted across her thoughts. “How do  _you_  do glamour? I mean–is it something you have to work at or is it instinctual? Is there a certain time during the year where you do it or—?” 

 _“A certain time of year?”_  questioned Marianne, her tiny point of a nose scrunching up in confusion. 

Roxanne shrugged, biting her lip with uncharacteristic bashfulness. “Well, I mean…I figured that midsummer would be the likely time for Fae to cross over.”

Marianne grinned, the expression and the light from the fireplace making her face glow. “ _A Midsummer Night’s Dream_ , right? Shakespeare was one of the first few humans to meet us. Though I think Titania regretted commissioning that play when he had her fall in love with that donkey dude.” She leaned forward conspiratorially, eyes gleaming with merry mischief. “It’s an ongoing rumor that Oberon bribed him for that particular plot point.” 

Roxanne’s laugh was equal parts shocked –  _(holy hell, Oberon and Titania were actual historical figures)_  – and exhilarated. “I guess all the legends about the Fae being petty were true.” 

Immediately realizing how she sounded – and the danger of provoking said pettiness – Roxanne winced, sharp and apologetic. “God, I’m  _so_  sorry. I can’t even blame that on wine—”

“No need to,” Marianne laughed. “Honestly, we’ve earned that reputation. We’re a… _passionate_  bunch. All of our emotions are very whole-hearted.” She crinkled her nose once again. “Most fairies – at least, the noble ones – try to reign it in, keep everything demure and docile. I tried for a while, but—”

“—You’re different?” Roxanne guessed with impish insight. 

The smile the Fairy Princess gave her was full of a fierce pride that was almost feral. “You have  _no_  idea, Miss Ritchi.” 

Yup, this woman was  _absolutely_  a wild thing, and Roxanne  _liked_  it. “Please, your highness, call me Roxanne.” 

The wildness softened into sweet sincerity, and she wore both well. “Only if you call me Marianne.”  

Roxanne felt a little gush of happiness. God, it had been  _so damn long_  since she had had a good one-on-one talk with a woman. The rumors of dating a superhero and the reality of dating a once-supervillain-now-superhero meant that almost everyone had assumptions about her that they didn’t care to correct. Being a high-profile reporter didn’t necessarily help that particular situation, honestly. 

Marianne took another sip of her tea and sighed comfortably as she crossed her long legs, dark brown boots lacing up them like vines.  Roxanne had a brief moment of bemused wonder over how the glamoured Fae looked more like a rock-star rebel what with her scuffed up boots, ripped jeans, leather jacket and dark and dramatic makeup than any clichéd Fairy Princess before Marianne spoke again. 

“For us, glamour…it’s a bit of everything you mentioned. The closest thing I can compare it to is puberty. The potential for it is in the blood of all Fae creatures, but it’s only when we’re out of childhood that it really starts to blossom.” She shrugged a slender shoulder. “Like I said, the potential is in all Fae, but there some who do dedicate their lives to studying it, mastering it.  It’s like any talent, I guess – it takes time.” She gnawed at her lip thoughtfully, the dark burgundy stain stark against blunt white teeth. “Though I think bloodlines  _do_  factor into it a bit. Since we’re directly descended from Oberon and Titania, my sister and I have always been able to do more with our glamour, both on ourselves and on others. I’m not sure what the story is with the Dark Forest, but I would be surprised if it wasn’t the same for Bog.” 

“Who’s a Goblin…?” Roxanne said, making sure she was keeping her facts straight. 

Marianne nodded, a soft blush coming to her cheeks and an even softer smile stealing across her lips. “It was such a relief to find out that he –  _they_ could do glamour too. I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to share stuff like this with him.” 

Roxanne arched a brow teasingly _. “Stuff like this?”_

Marianne’s blush deepened even as her smile spread. “Adventures.” 

Roxanne’s heart gave a sweet little ache of happiness for the obviously smitten younger woman, and she thought back to the towering man who had come with her. His own eyes – just as striking as the Fairy’s, but an impossibly bright blue instead of a glowing gold – had softened with tenderness as he looked back to where the two of them sat on the sofa before following Megamind to his Lab, the alien happily expounding upon all of the potential research and experiments made possible with this new link between their worlds.  _Good to know Love has a place in both worlds_.  “You must have a lot of them, being the royalty of both your kingdoms. How many times do you visit this world?” 

“Whenever we have our big seasonal festivals. They’re pretty well known in your world – Beltane, Midsummer, Samhain…”

Roxanne nodded, a crease coming between her eyes. “I didn’t know Yule was one of them.” 

“It’s not known for it like those ones are, but…” Marianne grinned a bit wickedly. “It’s when the Wild Hunt happens. At least, it’s when it _used_  to happen. That’s kinda calmed down a bit.” She then cocked her head at Roxanne, the movement only enhancing the feline quality of her features. “So you said he invented it? That’s pretty powerful magic.” 

Roxanne pursed her lips, arching a brow at her. “Science isn’t really the  _same_ as magic.” 

Marianne arched a brow back at her, tilting her chin defiantly. “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” 

Roxanne smiled, impressed. “A Fairy Princess who knows Clarke’s Three Laws? Megamind is going to adore you. Scratch that, he already does.” 

“He’s sweet.” Marianne snuggled down into the little nest of pillows surrounding her and. “And  _smart_. Why did he want to use glam—” she stopped herself and blushed before continuing, sounding out her words as if tasting a foreign food on her tongue, slow and savoring, “—the  _holograph_  in the first place?” 

“It was part of his Master of All Villainy gig,” Roxanne explained, wriggling her fingers dramatically, bringing a bout of laughter from the Fairy. Roxanne couldn’t keep back her own chuckle, rolling her eyes fondly. “Actually called himself that, my hand to God.” 

“Bog has a whole song and dance number about how  _Eviiiillll_  he is,” Marianne giggled.

Now it was Roxanne who threw her head back in laughter. “Oh my God,  _so does Megamind!_ Several of them!” 

_“Bog does too!”_

Both women managed to control their mirth, Marianne wiping a hand at her tears of mirth and Roxanne giving a happy, full-hearted sigh as she leaned her head back, thinking back to everything, how it all began. “So…he was the Master of Villainy. And Metro Man was his foe, the defender of our city. And I was his designated Damsel in Distress.” 

“You strike me as the kind of woman who would be more likely to  _give_  others distress,” Marianne opinioned, her smile sly. 

Roxanne smiled back, flattered. “Honestly, I did just that. Critiqued his plans, pointed out all the flaws, generally gave him a running commentary on my true opinions of him.” She shrugged her shoulder, the brass buttons of her royal blue blouse glinting in the fire’s glow. “Basically gave him as much hell as I could, you know? And somewhere along the line, it became bantering. And…” she blushed a bit, smiling softly, “…that became  _our_ thing.” 

“You should try it during a spar…” Marianne murmured, her gaze both understanding and looking inward at what was obviously some very fond memories. 

Roxanne smiled and sighed, stretching comfortably and settling deeper into the sofa. “So, that went on for a while. Megamind would kidnap me, I would snark with him, Metro Man would save the day. Then one day Way—I mean, Metro Man decided that he wanted to pursue something else and got the—” Roxanne pursed her lips and made air quotes with her fingers, sarcasm heavy upon her words, “— _brilliant_  idea that faking his death was the way to go about it. He made it damn convincing too. I don’t who was more shocked, me or Megamind. I had never thought him capable of actually succeeding in his plans.” 

_—no, what she had thought was that he wasn’t capable of **murder** , and thank God she had been proven right—_

Roxanne sighed, thinking back to how unhappy she had been, how… _betrayed_  she had felt. “I felt horrible for all the time I had wasted, snarking at him and not taking him seriously. He had proved he was a legitimate threat, and now the city was paying the price.” 

Marianne scooched closer, eyes wide and concerned. “What did you do?” 

Roxanne’s laugh was a soft exhale. “What any nosy reporter worth her salt would do – I started investigating how to bring him down.” The smile she gave Marianne was almost languid. “And Megamind helped.” 

“He  _helped?!”_ Marianne looked utterly baffled, but there was none of the judgment and censure in her voice that so often colored others when they spoke of Roxanne’s boyfriend. Roxanne took it as encouragement and continued her tale. 

“Yup. What I didn’t know – I mean, along with not knowing that Metro Man had faked his death – was that Megamind was incredibly depressed over being the Villain. Not having someone to battle him just brought it all out. For so long…” Roxanne grimaced, her heart twisting in sympathetic pain at the thought of the lies and misconceptions Megamind had believed and suffered, all in the name of destiny, “…he thought it was his _fate_ , you know? To be evil. To be the Bad Guy. He was so ready to accept that he could never be anything but that. And it was destroying him.” 

Marianne sighed deeply, and when she spoke her voice was a melancholy murmur. “So determined to keep himself unhappy…” 

The look she gave Roxanne sent a strong sense of something –  _understanding, connection, kinship_ – down her spine, and the younger woman’s smile was so very sad. “Bog…it’s not  _exactly_  the same situation, of course. But…he’s had his fair share of believing he was never meant to be anything but alone.” She sighed once more, the golden glow of her eyes softening in sweet pain dulling with righteous anger. “That he was too hideous to be loved.” 

Roxanne blinked, utterly thrown. “But…he’s  _not_  hideous!”

 _—_ because even if her heart was true and her love was strong and her lust for Megamind never-ending, Roxanne wasn’t  _blind_  and  _damn_ —

“And your lover obviously isn’t evil,” Marianne replied, a wry slant to those dark lips. “ _We_  know it, but good luck making  _them_  believe it, right?”

“Right…” Roxanne sighed as she swirled her mug, what remained of her tea sloshing a bit. “Anyway, like I said, Megamind was depressed over being a villain. And…well, a bunch of things happened, actually. But the holograph was something he used to disguise himself, to sneak out of jail. But then he used it to masquerade as a human, a museum employee. And…” Roxanne sighed, closing her eyes. “He used it so he could be with me. I thought I was falling in love with this man who was so dedicated to bringing down Megamind too, but…it was  _him_  the whole time.” 

There was a sharp clink of a mug being set down, and Roxanne felt a jolt of sincere surprise and something close to wariness when she saw how Marianne’s eyes blazed. “He deceived you?” Those blunt white teeth bared themselves in a snarl, and Roxanne was potently reminded that this young woman had already proven herself to be far more ferocious than she could have ever imagined a Fairy being.  _“He played you?”_

“I know, I know, it sounds bad,” Roxanne hastened to assure her, setting her mug down. Marianne gave her a look that was almost a glower, and Roxanne sighed, raking a hand through her hair. “It  _was_  bad. I was hurt and angry and…” she grimaced, the pain of the memory stinging through her skin, pricking at her soul, “… _betrayed_  all over again. I thought he was  _using_  me the whole time, just like he had in the past, pulling one over the Damsel for the sake of Villainy. But…” 

Roxanne sighed and looked frankly into Marianne’s eyes, praying she would understand. “He just couldn’t think of any other way to be with me. It doesn’t excuse the deception, and deep down he knew it was wrong, but…he thought had no chance with me. As the Villain everyone thought he was.” Roxanne looked down, her hand twisting into the fabric of her skirt. “The Villain  _he_  thought he was. In the disguise…he could be himself. Not the Master of All Villainy, but…the  _real_  him. That’s who I fell in love with.” She then smirked. “The song and dance and smoke machines are just a bonus.” 

Marianne studied her with those animal, amber eyes and then snorted. “Guess they really are kindred spirits. Though we don’t have smoke machines. Probably for the best, Bog would use it too much and die from inhalation.” 

Roxanne chuckled. “I never asked, but I think Megamind invented some where the smoke actually serves as a protection barrier.” 

Marianne chuckled too before dropping her eyes, dark lashes lush against the roses of her cheeks. “Sorry for overreacting,” she said suddenly, peeking up at her hostess, who was once reminded of this creature’s relative youth, her strange mix of boldness and bashfulness forming into an armor that Roxanne had never encountered. “I…” 

Marianne stopped and sighed, the leather of her jacket making a soft noise as she crossed her arms. “I have… _issues_  with that. Being used. Getting played. Bog does too, but…it’s still a touchy subject for me.” She bit her lip and looked down once more. “It took me a long time to trust again, after going through that. I don’t like hearing women getting the same wounds.” 

Roxanne’s heart ached for the girl, and she reached out a gentle hand to her, touching the pale ridges of the Fairy’s knuckles. “You don’t have to explain  _anything,”_  she said softly. “But…I know how lonely it can be, being in a positon of power, made into a figure that everyone make assumptions about and that people use in their own plans.” She flashed back to Hal and his smug, infuriating assurance that she would happily play the part of his Heroine, and felt a burn of anger go through her at the memory. “Their own narratives.”

Biting down on the bubble of anger in her, she focused once more on Marianne, squeezing her hand. “So…if you ever wanted to talk, I’m a good listener. But only if you wanted to.” 

There was a mild bite of bitterness to Marianne’s laugh, but the smile she gave Roxanne was soft with sincerity. “I don’t doubt it.” She then looked at her mug and exhaled deeply, her expression rueful. “But I think I need something a _lot_  stronger than tea to get into just how my ex-fiancé fucked me up.” 

Roxanne’s brows shot up in surprise –  _a broken heart, huh?_  – before lowering in contemplation, her eyes going over to the kitchen. 

More specifically, to the liquor cabinet. 

Roxanne eyed it almost languidly, weighing the pros and cons. _Well, it **is** Yule…_

_Screw it._

Roxanne stood and smoothed down her pencil skirt, kicking her abandoned heels aside. “I think I can help you with that.” 

Marianne blinked up at her, and Roxanne thought back to Hal and felt a new burn within her, one of eager retribution, and favored her gust with a slightly evil smirk. “And I can share some of my own stories of creeps. In the meantime, your highness…” 

Roxanne started off to the kitchen, practically sauntering as she aimed a grin of invitation over her shoulder at the Fairy Princess, “…I think I would be  _highly_ remiss as your hostess if I didn’t offer you some of this realm’s favored seasonal beverages.” 

Her grin turned wicked once more. “ _Especially_  the strong ones.”    

* * *

Megamind’s laugh as he ducked out from under the machine was one of both high amusement and shock.  _“You kidnapped her sister and she punched you in the face?!”_

Bog smirked reminiscently, thinking back to the snarl the pretty little Fairy Princess had sported, those lustrous eyes smoldering with rage. “Not before threatening to have my head on a stick. Ours has been a strange courtship.” 

“I’ll say.” Megamind tossed his wrench into the air, and a brainbot swiftly snapped the tool up in its steely teeth before it fell to the floor. “And here I was thinking  _nothing_  could beat the one Roxanne and I shared.” He grimaced, scratching at the strip of his goatee. “Though I’m sure she would have mixed feelings in regards to me calling all the kidnappings I put her through a  _courtship_.” 

“As I understand, some pairs of your realm partake in such a custom quite regularly,” Bog offered, settling on the work bench with a slight groan, long legs stretching before him as he gave his neck a satisfying  _crack_. The brainbot dropped the wrench upon the workbench and flew closer to him, whirring in obvious intrigue, and Bog arched a heavy brow at it. None of his subjects could fly like him, but for some reason, the wee thing reminded him rather of Thang…

“Yes, but that’s for weddings and such,” Megamind countered, leaning against the hulking hull of his robot, fondly watching the brainbot hover closer as Bog extended a hand to it. “And even then, it’s seen as not the norm. You can pet them, if you want. They only bite if provoked.” 

“As do I,” Bog chuckled, letting his long fingers – the nails ragged instead of claws – scratch over the dome of the flying creation. It whirled at a lower register, the sound reminiscent of a purr as it pushed up into his large palm. Bog gave it a playful growl. “Best watch yourself, metal beastie. May not have my fangs, but that wouldn’t make it any less fierce.” 

Megamind beamed at the sight, how an actual creature straight from the mythos of this world –  _not just any run-of-the-mill Fae creature, but the actual King of the Goblins!_  – was sitting on his workbench and petting his brainbot as it unabashedly snuggled up to him. It was a pure shame that Minion had the night off. Such a turn of events was extraordinary, but then, the path that science trod always was. Still, to think that it was  _he_ who had unearthed the very barrier of legends that separated the magical from the mundane…!

Bog cocked a brow at his host, his smirk just a shade shy of a genuine smile as he took in the rising swell of questions and curiosity in Megamind’s eyes. “Y’know, if I didn’t know better, I’d wager you had some Fairy blood.” 

Megamind blinked, thrown out of the deepening spiral of wonder he was riding, then arched a brow back at the Bog King. “Oh? Why say that?” 

“Your eyes. They have a Fae born look to them. Marianne damn well speaks with them too.” Bog then shrugged. “If you have questions, I would answer them. Hospitality is no small thing for the Fair Folk, and neither is rewarding it.” 

“Is  _that_  what you call yourselves?” Megamind asked, eagerness banishing any restraint in his queries. “The Fair Folk? But you also go by the Fae, right? Are your courts divided into Winter and Summer courts? Seelie and Unseelie—?” 

“Gods, but you  _are_  a scholar, aren’t you?” Bog said with almost horrified amusement. He removed his hand from the brainbot to scratch at the stubble he sported in his glamoured state, looking thoughtful. “Fair Folk is usually used in reference to fairies, but it’s become nigh interchangeable with the Fae. But the Fae is a…” he waved a hand in an encompassing gesture, “… _collective_  term, I suppose, for all who live beyond the veil, regardless of which court and kingdom they belong to.” 

“So you  _do_ have the kingdoms divided,” Megamind breathed, fascinated. 

“Twasn’t always the case, but aye, now we do. That may change, if Marianne has her way.”

“And she can unite the kingdoms because she’s next in line for the throne…?”

“For the Fairy Kingdom,” Bog nodded, pleased by his host’s attention to detail. It did not do to be heedless when in the company of any Fae creature, no matter if he  _was_  currently feeling quite comfortable indeed. “As Queen, she will have the power to strengthen ties with my Kingdom. As for courts, I dinnae remember if they’re sorted due to seasons, though the fairies used to journey south for Winter. It’s more so a matter of light and dark…” 

“So, Seelie and Unseelie.” Megamind stroked his chin thoughtfully. “The Seelie Court is said to be for fairies inclined to the light– though of course,  _fairies_  was a colloquial term for all Fae creatures. It sounds like Miss Marianne belongs to that Kingdom.”  

“The Fairy Kingdom rules the Light Fields, and my domain is the Dark Forest,” confirmed Bog. “But dinnae confuse our ruling of them as ruling  _all_ magical realms nor courts. Ours are only where our people staked a claim.” 

“Then perhaps  _Seelie_ and  _Unseelie_  are more akin to universal terms, even with the etymology being Middle English…” Megamind mused, the sphere of his head scrunching in thought, and Bog hoped he looked like he had absolute clarity in what his host was talking about. “Though  _your_ species of Fae  _might_  have a stronger connection to the actual beginnings of the Unseelie, given that the oldest records are of them are Scottish folklore. It would certainly explain your accent.”  

Bog blinked at him, bewildered. “What accent?” 

Megamind blinked back at him, opened his mouth, closed it, coughed, then continued on. “Regardless, the theme of the separation of Light and Dark  _is_  a worldwide one, though often morality isn’t  _supposed_  to be assigned to one side over the other.” He paused, staring at Bog shrewdly. “Though if my recordings don’t lie, I picked up on some sound waves of you proclaiming your  _evilness.”_

Bog rolled his eyes. “Marianne would be the first to tell you to take that song with a grain of salt. For goblins,  _evil_  speaks more of…” he gestured once more, grasping the air with gnarled fingers as though trying to grab the right word, “… _wickedness_. Delight in destruction, in rebellion and untamed savagery. Not unnecessary  _harm_  or  _depravity_. Goblins only give cruelty when it’s been given to us.” 

_— never mind that their punishments erred on the disproportionate side, but one had to make an impression, didn’t they?—_

Megamind rolled his eyes as well, but the smirk he sported had a commiserating slant to it. “Fair enough. As the former Master of all Villainy, I too know the magnificence of mayhem and mischief.” He cocked his head at Bog –  _like a flower bulb,_  Bog thought apropos of nothing – curiosity in his eyes once more. “But you’ve obviously have found a way to balance darkness and light, if you’re so close to uniting the kingdoms.” 

_Ah._

“Not…necessarily,” Bog said slowly, choosing his words with care as he folded his arms, the rough leather of his jacket crackling softly and the dull spikes decorating his shoulders gleaming with the movement. “That’s the _aim_ , of course. But not everyone is… _for_  the idea of unity between our kingdoms. Some are of the opinion that separate but equal is how things should remain, never mind that that’s a load of rubbish. There’s been resistance, especially from the elders of Marianne’s court. Even if it was a case of simple diplomacy, they would object.” 

“And it isn’t that?” Megamind guessed, his expression already showing that he knew the answer. 

Bog laughed, the sound low in both volume and spirits. “Course it isn’t. They despise that Marianne has chosen me. As if there was any such thing as choice when it comes to Love, strange and wild thing that it is.” He met his host’s vividly green eyes frankly. “And nothing is more strange and wild than a Goblin and Fairy in love. I want nothing more to give Marianne the unity she desires, but when our…what we  _share_  is one of the things that makes those curmudgeons stall any action for it…” Bog looked down and away, his jaw tensing. “It’s difficult. I hate to burden her.” 

Megamind swiftly pushed away from the hull of his machine and strode to the Bog King, his own jaw tight with unhappiness. By the mercy of Maslow, it was so wretchedly  _unfair._  “But you’re a  _King,_ her equal! You  _love_  her.” 

His anger at such injustice bled through his voice, and Bog’s grin was utterly devoid of amusement. “ _Goblin_  trumps  _King_ , and love will not blind them in that matter. I’m  _different._  That’s cause enough for them to turn from me.” He then chuckled, a glint of fondness coming back into his eyes. “Thankfully, Marianne is different from  _them_ , and she’s already made it plain as peat that she will not be swayed by their opinions.” 

He then paused, and one of those long hands strayed to the long column of his neck, to a leather cord from which hung an intricate piece of metalwork, a pendent resembling a miniature scepter, studded with amber. Gnarled fingers toyed with it, and bright blue eyes lowered. “Although…” 

Megamind swept his cape aside and sat next to him, leaning forward inquiringly. “Yeeessss…?” 

Bog sighed, scrubbing a hand over his long, sharp face. “It will be your head on a stick if ye so much as breathe a word to Marianne about this. It’s damn beastly of me, knowing that she loves that I can do glamour same as her so that we share such visits…” his dour scowl lifted slightly as he smirked, tenderness in his eyes, “…such  _adventures_  to this world together. But… sometimes I’m loath to use glamour in her presence.” 

Megamind leaned away, taken aback. “But… _why!?”_

Bog’s laugh was harsh and hard as stone. “Ye saw what I am out of glamour, didn’t ye?” 

Oh, indeed he had. The shock of seeing such creatures as this Goblin and his Fairy paramour through the lens of his scanner had only been doubled when he saw the sheer amount of  _height_  the Bog King had taken in his glamoured state after stepping through the veil. Though that had been edged out by sheer fascination of how his sharp, severe features had carried over in this state, certain elements morphing yet still staying true..

Never mind the odd but undeniable thrill of seeing the King of Goblins favored leather and spikes just as  _he_  did—

Bog continued speaking, and Megamind forced himself to focus. “Marianne’s race…their features change somewhat when they cross, but it isn’t dramatic.” He scowled. “Not like  _mine_. I become something else entirely. When she sees me like this…” he sighed, the wave of his hand weary as he gestured to himself, “…I cannae help but feel it’s a cruel reminder. What I’m not. What I  _never_  will be. And when we return to our realm…she must face what I am.” His hand dropped to his knee, gnarled knuckles tightening into a fist, his voice low with self-loathing that was all too familiar to Megamind.  _“Hideous.”_

A harsh exhale made him look up, and when Bog looked up he was startled to see the narrowed eyes and thin mouth of his host, the almost lavender flush of his ears and cheeks indicating quite the struggle to keep some fiercely felt emotion in. 

The look Megamind gave him was almost confrontational, but then he sighed, the tense line of his shoulders drooping before he gave his guest a wry smile. “Would you like to know how Roxanne and mine’s courtship began?  _Truly_  began?” 

Though confused by the abrupt change of conversation, Bog nodded warily. 

Megamind stood, snapping his fingers at the brainbot still hovering nearby. “You know where it is.” 

It gave a sound of confirmation, then swiftly swooped away in a whirl of gears. There was rattle and clank of many metal things being thrown about, and then it was back, dropping a small something into the hand of its creator. 

Megamind began to lace it upon his wrist, and Bog realized it was some sort of bracelet, with a strange sort of device fixed to it. His host kept his eyes down as he began to talk, his eyes focusing upon the fiddling of his own fingers. “I invented this to aid me whenever I needed to go about unobserved in my misdeeds, be it for myself or for others. I felt it only appropriate to deflect attention from me until it was prepared.” With one final clip, he finished with it and lifted his eyes to Bog’s. “When I was prepared. Had the stage set, so to speak.” 

He looked down at the device with an expression that was difficult to read, his narrowed, his voice almost a murmur. “It helped me so often, and when I heard her coming that night, I thought of it doing simply just that. I was reacting on sheer instinct. It began as that, but…then…things changed.” 

He sighed and then turned the device with his fingers, and—

Bog jumped to his feet with an oath as his host’s image flickered and changed, and suddenly a mortal man stood before him.

Instinct took over, and Bog  _snarled_ , tensing at the sudden surprise, the potential of an attack, his hands hooking into claws—

The man held his hands up, the gesture one that both pacified and brought even more attention to the sheer difference between him and Megamind. “ _It’s fine!_  It’s fine it’s fine it’s fine, it’s still me!”  

The voice was the same, and Bog dropped out of his snarl to boggle at the man. _“You…you’re glamoured?”_

The man –  _Megamind, it’s actually bloody him_  – laughed, and rubbed a hand almost bashfully at the back of his neck, and gods,  _he had hair now_ , loads of the stuff, and his skin was pale, no longer the soft blue that had had both he and Marianne exchanging awestruck looks. “Uh, in a manner of speaking. I…it’s my holographic watch – helps me appear as other people, adopt other personas so I could go into the public unnoticed.” 

So, glamour. Bog would have push the point, but he was too thunderstruck at the sheer  _brilliance_  of this being for being able to harness such power.

Megamind continued to speak, his fingers now fiddling with the clothing that was so very different, and Bog found the earlier dark hues and the leather and spikes far superior to such nondescript hues and textures. “I…I was at the museum that had been created in Metro Man’s honor, and I wasn’t supposed to be there, but then Roxanne appeared, and she would have been _furious_  to see me there, what with me supposedly doing him in, and—” 

He stopped and waved a hand at himself, almost deprecatingly. “He worked at the museum, and I simply – acted. Scanned him and assumed his appearance and Roxanne never questioned it, not anything…”   

He stopped once more and sighed, his shoulders slumping. When he lifts his eyes to meet Bog’s, Bog is finds that they’re the same vivid green as before.  _The one thing glamour cannot hide._

“I began working with her,” Megamind said, with the air of admitting something truly shameful. “We began…seeing each other. As him…she wanted to be with me. And I thought…I thought it was the only way I could have her in my life and  _not_  have her hate me. The only way she would  _want_ me.” 

He makes a low noise of disgust, begin to pace. “I gave myself lie upon lie, telling myself it was worth it, that such deception was permissible…” 

He stopped in front of a mirror, towering and cracked, an object that Bog had made a point of giving distance to. His glamoured host stared into the shattered depths of it with a deep look of scorn, of disgust. “I lied to her. I tricked her, because I was so desperate for her. When she found out the truth…” 

His fingers went to the switch of the device, and suddenly the true Megamind is back, his head domed, his skin blue, his eyes green and glinting with regret. “It all worked out, of course. But while she forgave me…I’ve never been able to forgive myself.” He turned away from the mirror and head back to Bog, his expression a strange sort of resolve and weariness. “Now I only use this when I absolutely have to. And I  _never_  use that setting.” 

He sat down next to Bog, who could only stare at him silently.  _Good gods…_

Megamind took a breath and spoke once more, his words both vulnerable and blunt. “But I’m still tempted to. Only natural, when all your life you’ve been made to feel…well,  _different_. Wrong.” 

“ _Different_  isn’t another word for  _wrong,”_  Bog interjected, and noted with faint surprise how soft his voice was. 

Megamind gave him a quick, grateful half-smile. “Well…no, you’re right, it isn’t. But…I  _do_  understand the desire to make the life of someone you… _care_ for easier. Roxanne…she’s had her fair share of unwanted attention, and I doubt that having  _me_  by her side is any kind of helpful. But, I don’t. Because I know what she wants, and I respect that.” 

Bog arched a brow at him. “And that is…?” 

“Me.” Megamind flushed then laughed, his soft exhale of laughter both bashful and bewildered. “Strange and impossible as it is. She wants me as  _me_. And I love her too much to deny her that.” He looked up at Bog, his face almost fierce with conviction. “And I’m smart enough to see it’s the same with you and your Princess. If we’re any kind of worthy of them, we’ll honor their choice to be with the  _real_  us.” 

Bog looked into the fierce face of his host before feeling a frankly terrifying prickle behind his eyes. He swiftly looked away, and was thankful when the tightness in his throat only served to make him sound gruff. “Ye already proved ye were smart. Stop bludy showin’ off.” 

Megamind laughed, dispelling the intensity of the room, a fact Bog was immensely thankful for. Still, to be certain there was no danger of it returning, he nodded to the device on Megamind’s wrist. “Say what you will, but that’s glamour. I dinnae how the hells you harnessed such magic, but it’s a bloody marvel.” 

Megamind snorted, rolling his eyes with a grin. “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. Where do your wings go while your glamoured?” 

Bog grinned as well and shrugged off his jacket, letting it fall to the floor with a flump before tugging up the back of the shirt he was wearing, a well-worn thing emblazoned with the sigil of some clan called Def Leppard. Being that in his natural state Bog didn’t bother with clothes, he felt no trepidation that either fairies or humans had in disrobing in front of an audience. 

The look in Megamind’s eyes as he stepped forward would have made it worthwhile even if he had been, what with how those green eyes gleamed with entranced wonder as he took in the outline of four wings stamped and stretching out from his spine, spanning across the pale, hard muscle of Bog’s glamoured form. The outline was stark and black, the lines of it both thick and thin, far more delicate and intricate than any needle could manage, but it was the almost iridescent shimmer that had Megamind mindlessly reaching out a hand, gloved fingertips hovering over skin like rainbow tinted glass. The realization of what he was about to do suddenly hit him, and he flushed, his fingers curling back. 

“I only bite if provoked,” Bog offered, watching him over his shoulder with an amused smirk. “And a wee touch won’t do that, I promise you.” 

Megamind flushed anew but gave a curious poke, which soon transformed into a feverishly fascinated examination, muttering and murmuring to himself endless notes and observation before realizing that his subject was standing there in patient, obviously amused silence. “Can – can they  _feel_  me when I do this? Can  _you_  feel  _them?_  Does it hurt?” 

“Not at all,” Bog assured him. “An’ of course I can feel ye, you’re bloody touching me!” 

Megamind huffed. “But do your wings – I mean, they can’t be _pulled_  away from you like this, right? Not in this state, yes? There’s no danger of that.” 

“The only thing that can harm glamour is cold iron,” Bog confirmed. “If you were to tear this hair away from my skull, you wouldn’t pull away the true scales on my scalp. These are how my wings exist in glamour, etched into this hide, as are Marianne’s. If one were to slice hair or gouge out such tattoos with a blade of iron, however…” 

He trailed away into meaningful silence, giving enough time for Megamind to shudder over such an image, before continuing on. “But that’s built on the assumption I wouldn’t put up a fight.” Bog tugged down his shirt back down and shrugged as he turned and faced Megamind, his smirk just a shade shy of vicious. “And I  _earned_  my title of King. Only Marianne is a match for me.” 

Megamind stepped back, shaking his head in wonderment, grinning from ear to ear, the green of his eyes positively glowing with sheer excitement. “I can’t even imagine what sort of weaponry you use in battle! Perhaps a collaboration between us—?” 

“A Goblin’s main weapon is their body,” Bog stated, but a definite gleam of intrigue glinted in his eyes. “But if your mind managed to create your own personal glamour…I would be a fool of a King to not join forces with you.” 

Besides, he liked his style. 

Megamind smiled, sharp and conspiring as he leaned forward, the eagerness in his voice like the thrum of electricity. “Has the almighty Bog King ever heard of a smoke bomb?” 

* * *

Marianne collided into the door frame of the Lab, eyes amber slits against the smoke that billowed out of it. Roxanne was soon to follow, thudding into her with an  _“Oof!”_    

Marianne put out a hand to steady her and quickly found that she needed to steady herself, her ankles twining around each other and her head reeling. Honestly, the smoke wasn’t helping, and she swatted at it growl that was rather slurred before calling out into the darkened Lab.  _“BOG!_  Baby, you okay?” 

There was a mix of muttered oaths and coughing, and then a thoroughly disgruntled voice rang out. “Right, Daddy needs some help. Can one of you get the vents?”

There was a chorus of mechanical noises, and the sound of a great many things swooping through the air. Marianne, all too familiar with the danger of bats and hawks and owls, yelped in alarm and stumbled back. 

Roxanne, still half-slumped against Marianne, lifted her head from her shoulder. “Just brainbots,” she explained with a decidedly blasé air. “They help him out if stuff like thish –  _this_  happens.” She giggled, swaying a bit on her stockinged feet. “Happens a  _lot.”_

Marianne relaxed, turning to her as she tried to understand. “So like minions? Bog has ‘em too.” 

Roxanne shook her head emphatically.  _“No no no!_  Minion isn’t here tonight! He has cooking classes right now an’ they’re finally doin’ French cuisine—”

Marianne blinked in bewilderment and was about to ask just what the hell her hostess was talking about, but was distracted by the sight of the smoke swirling away, revealing her glamoured Goblin lover and their host, both of them looking rather like youths being caught in some mischief. 

 _“BOG!”_  Marianne ran towards him, eager to check him for any wounds. At least, she tried to. But her boots were surprisingly heavy all of the sudden and the room seemed to swirl around her, even with the smoke being gone. She managed to make it to him, grabbing fistfuls of his shirt to haul herself up to look into his face, amber eyes wide and voice loud and heartfelt.  _“S’okay, baby, we’re here!”_

Bog caught her around the waist with those strong arms of his – _mmmmm, she **loved**  those arms, scaly or sinewy _– and hoisted her upright and whoops, when had she started sliding down? “No need to worry, Tough Girl, we’re both fine.” 

He shot a look at Megamind that was more abashed than baleful, and Megamind coughed into a fist, a faint flush of lavender to his ears. “Just having an’ adventure with some smoke missiles—”

“Smoke  _bombs,”_  interjected Megamind, his flush deepening to violet. 

“Right, an’ then we were wondering if there was a way to miniaturize them—”

“Shrink them,” Megamind muttered, scuffing the toe of his boot against the floor. 

“Aye, so that I could take them back with us, but instead they were enlarged and—”

“—set off.” Megamind sighed, giving a contrite look to both ladies. “I’m terribly sorry, I hope neither of you were  _too_ worried, the smoke is absolutely harmless, one of my own inventions—”

“Wasn’ worried for  _us,”_  Marianne stated, poking an empathetic finger into Bog’s chest, and he grunted at impact. “Was worried for  _you.”_

Roxanne laughed as she staggered into the Lab, still beaming. “It was so funny! So  _great!_  Marianne saw th’ smoke an’ she vaulted the sofa an’ said we had to go rescue you!” She waved her hands above her head, both of them clutching a glass of some fragrantly steaming beverage, and her grin was bright and beatific. “So here we are! Ready to rescue you!” She pointed at her boyfriend the best she could and gave a laugh that was quite close to a cackle. “Time for  _you_  to be the Damsel, honey!” 

Megamind gaped at her while Marianne brightened, golden eyes glowing with both the spirit of anticipation and what seemed to be another sort of spirits entirely. “If he’sh the Damsel, can I be the Villain? I wanna sing some Villain sshhh – songs!” 

She buried her face in Bog’s neck, grinning wickedly as she began to croon, her voice hot and heavy against the Goblin’s skin. “ _Ah’ve been missssshtrrrreeeeated…”_

Bog leaned back, a blush upon his cheeks but utterly bewildered. “Marianne, what the  _hells_ is wrong with you?” 

She rolled her eyes dramatically, the amber of them flashing. “Nothin’ wrong with me! I’m  _great!_  I’m  _perfect!”_  She flung out an arm to Roxanne. “So is she! And so are spiced apple toddies!” 

Roxanne waltzed up to her and grandly offered her one of the glasses. Marianne eagerly accepted it, taking a long slurp and then letting out a deeply satisfied sigh. “Oh god, Bog, this shit is  _so_ good.” 

Roxanne doubled up in laughter, clutching her side with her free hand.  _“Oh my God!_  The Fairy Princess said  _shit!”_

 _“ **Fuck** yeah she did!”_ Marianne proclaimed in a sing-song voice, grinning wide and wild, her eyes hazy with what was clearly not just happiness. 

Roxanne practically fell to the floor with the new curse, positively weeping in her mirth, while Marianne triumphantly downed the rest of her drink. 

Bog swallowed thickly, his lean throat working. “Ah take it spiced apple toddies are quite…strong?” 

“They are when Roxanne makes them,” Megamind muttered, looking as pale as his unique complexion would let him. 

Meanwhile, Marianne had stumbled out of Bog’s arms into Roxanne’s, and now looked the investigative reporter full in the face, hazy hazel-gold meeting bleary bright blue. “I know I’ve known you for an evening,” the Fairy Princess said with the whole-hearted sincerity that comes from utter inebriation, “but Roxanne Ritchi,  _you are my_   _absolute best friend. Our names rhyme and everything.”_

Roxanne beamed at her, her cheeks pink as the primroses Megamind had seen earlier outside the barrier. “You’re my best friend  _too_ , your highness! Our names  _do_  rhyme and everything!” 

Marianne beamed back, then paused before giving a shrug. “Well, next to Boggy. But I have sex with him, an’ I don’t have sex with you, which is good because I don’t think your lover would like that.”

She then turned, addressing the Goblin. “Boggy, you’re still my best friend, okay? Also, when we get back to your Forest, we should totally fu—”

 ** _“Marianne!”_**  Bog’s cry was almost a yelp, and Megamind was looking like a likely candidate to death from second-hand embarrassment.  

Roxanne peered at Bog with careful concentration and then nudged Marianne. “You  _should_  totally fuck him,” she stage-whispered. “He’s  _gorgeous.”_

“You should see him out of glamour,” Marianne stage-whispered back. “I can’t keep my hands off of him. It drives my dad  _nuts.”_

Roxanne giggled and favored Bog with a bright and beautiful smile. “I’m  _sh–so_  happy to have met you, your majeshty,” she said with careful enunciation and obvious sincerity, only slurring a tiny bit. “And I am  _so_  happy you an’ Marianne are together, and that you fell in love, ‘cause that Roland guy sounded like a  _total_  ass hat.” 

Now it was Marianne’s turn to double up in laughter, practically sinking to the floor. “ASS HAT!” she howled.  _“I love it!_  That’sh my new favorite word!” 

Roxanne laughed as well, gesticulating wildly with her drink, sloshing a bit of it on the floor. “God, you know who  _else_  was an ass hat?  _Hal.”_ She looked eagerly at Megamind. “Right, Megamind? Wasn’t Hal an absolute ass hat too?” 

“Yes, he was very much a hat made out of ass,” Megamind agreed, deftly snatching her drink away. “Roxanne, perhaps you and the Princess should lay dow—”

 _“Gimme gimme gimme!_  I need that!” Roxanne snatched backed her drink and then hoisted it into the air, striking a grand pose. “To Princess Marianne of the Fairy Kingdom, vanquisher of cheating ass-hats!” 

Marianne giggled and raised her own empty glass, planting her feet the best she could. “To Roxanne Ritchi, the Queen of Metro City Investigative Reporting!” She then laughed and lowered the glass, shaking her head. “I still don’t know what that means!” 

Roxanne gasped and grasped her arms, eyes wide. “I SHOULD SHOW YOU MY INTERVIEWS!” 

“I SHOULD SHOW YOU MY  _SWORD!”_

Both women ran out of the Lab, leaving both their boyfriends and a ringing silence behind them. 

Megamind chewed on his lip, looking at the door they had departed through. “Does she actually  _have_ a sword?” 

Bog nodded, his eyes also on the doorway. “Wears it around her neck, like I do with my scepter. An’ considering the state both of them are in, there’s a very real chance of someone or somethin’ getting’ maimed if we don’t intervene.” 

Megamind sighed, shoulders slumping. “Then best we do just that.” He then paused, looking at the King out of the corner of his eye. “But, first…” 

His mouth lifted in the start of an eager smile. “Want to try another smoke bomb?”

Bog grinned viciously.  _“Oh gods yes.”_  


End file.
